On Monday, sheriff’s Deputy Wady Sedan went to a southwest Ocala residence and was told by the homeowner that more than $4,000 had been taken from his bank account and that 30 guns were missing from his home.

The man said his son, Nix, told him Saturday that he was moving out of the home and going to live with a relative in Reddick.

On Monday, the man said, he was talking with a friend who said that within the last few months Nix had shown him a number of firearms. As the friend was describing the weapons, the man realized they might be his.

The man told Sedan he went home and checked the closet where he normally keeps his weapons and found that some shotguns, rifles and handguns were missing.

Sedan and the man went into Nix’s room and saw a large hole in a wall that led to where the father stored the guns.

Detective Brandon Spillman and Lt. Dennis McFatten found Nix and interviewed him. He told them he took four firearms from his father, then later took another six guns, authorities said. He said he sold the weapons to a man who never paid him for them.

So far, detectives have not recovered any of the firearms, which were valued at $14,950.

As for the money, the father said $4,046.74 was taken from his bank account. He said someone took his checks, signed his name and cashed them.

Nix admitted forging his father’s name on checks and cashing them, authorities said. Nix claimed his father knew about the checks and told him to pay back the money.

The father told Spillman his son did not tell him about the checks and said he did not give his son permission to cash any checks.

Nix, who locally doesn’t have a criminal record, was arrested and taken to the Marion County Jail.

In an interview with a Star-Banner reporter, Nix said his father’s home was burglarized earlier this month while he was there and that the burglar hit him “upside the head,” knocking him out.

Nix, who didn’t want to say who the person was, said all the guns were taken.

Before the alleged burglary, Nix said someone offered to purchase four of his father’s guns, but he declined to sell them. Nix said he has never seen his father’s collection, and he wants to help the detective recover the weapons.

Anyone with information as to the whereabouts of the firearms can call Spillman at 438-5940 or Crime Stoppers at 368-STOP, or visit www.ocalacrimestoppers.com.

Contact Austin L. Miller at 867-4118 or austin.miller@starbanner.com.

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